LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- University of Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino said Tuesday's news of his program's involvement in federal bribery investigation into college basketball recruiting is the work of "a few bad actors."

In a statement released through his attorney Tuesday night, Pitino said the news was a shock to him:

"These allegations come as a complete shock to me. If true, I agree with the U.S. Attorneys Office that these third-party schemes, initiated by a few bad actors, operated to commit a fraud on the impacted universities and their basketball programs, including the University of Louisville. Our fans and supporters deserve better and I am committed to taking whatever steps are needed to ensure those responsible are held accountable."

Federal criminal complaints accuse at least one coach at U of L of taking part in a scheme this summer to funnel about $100,000 from the Adidas apparel company to an All-American high school player that Louisville was recruiting. The “bribe money” was meant to be concealed from the NCAA and university officials.

In another case, a U of L coach was caught on an undercover FBI video negotiating payments in a Las Vegas hotel room for a second recruit who is still in high school, prosecutors claim. The coach, who is not named, acknowledged that his school was on probation at the time and said, 'we gotta be very low key," according to court documents.

Related Stories:

Copyright 2017 WDRB Media. All rights reserved.